WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Pete Stauber (MN-08) introduced H.R. 8865, the Protecting Taxpayers from Fraudulent Providers Act to defend taxpayer dollars by preventing fraud in federal health care programs. Specifically, this bill permanently bars a person, company, clinic, contractor, or other organization convicted of stealing money and committing fraud in government health care organizations, such as Medicare, Medicaid, or CHIP, from ever participating in those programs again.
“Fraud is rampant in federal programs across the country, as highlighted by the massive fraud scandal that recently rocked Minnesota,” said Congressman Pete Stauber. “It has been infuriating to learn about the criminals who enriched themselves with expensive homes, luxury cars, and lavish vacations by stealing over $9 billion in taxpayer dollars meant to help the most vulnerable among us. Minnesotans – and…
PAYROLL & HR CONTROLS (PREVENTING “GHOST” SCHEMES)
Payroll fraud is often the hardest to detect because it “looks” like a normal business expense.
- Segregation of Duties (SoD): The person who adds new employees to the system must not be the same person who approves the monthly pay run.
- Mandatory Vacation Policy: Require all financial and HR staff to take 5–10 consecutive days of leave annually. Fraud often surfaces when the perpetrator isn’t there to “hide” the trail.
- Ghost Employee Audit: Perform a quarterly “Headcount Reconciliation” where managers must physically verify every name on their payroll list exists.
- Self-Pay Blocking: Ensure the payroll software has a hard-coded block preventing administrators from editing their own salary or bank details.